Bellows



June 22, 1937.

H. C. LOCKWOOD BELLOWS Filed July 21, 1934 4 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR HEA/AW Coo/ 0? LOU/(W000 June 22, 1937.

H. C. LOCKWOOD BELLOWS Filed July 21, 1934 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 wf .f M M M ATTORNEY June 22, 1937. c. LOCKWOOD BELLOWS Filed July 21 1934 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 w 0 m R ox E v% w 1C V R 3 H H. C, LOCKWOOD BELLOWS Filed July 21;, 1934 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 K N R PM A Y. mm w \w M 5 l \w \w w sh a Qwherever Bermudian 22;,1937 I a which is 'capable i v vitl'is talidirig; without leak- 1 age or wayimpairingits, normal operation,

I pressures greatly in excess ofsthe pressures which 3 prior types of bellowsare' capable otwithsitanda ingq The arrangement of. the bellowsis such that 'theiflexingeaction ,oftheflexibleportions oi the 1 bellows inall, particulars may be predetermined andgllmited' asdesired,inconsequence oil which l0 '4 deilniteicontroh of the strength and fatigue suse I ceptibllity of the flexiblezbellowslparts is obtained;

Otheradvantages willnappear hereinafter."

Inthe. preferred embodiment of'the invention.

A the Ib'el lowsgconsists" essentially of 9.;plt1rality of is relatively thin iiat'plates otp'sultable pref; erably stainless ierrous metal, having central openings andconce'ntrically disposed and secured tosethenadjacent. their outer and inner periph ueiiesw a's, hereinafter described, by :ge'lectricwre- 1 Qfithe .sbllowsaIein contact with adjacent plates throughout substantially lithe-I ventire extent of I 7 their opposed faces when the bellows is fully con tracted:,,so.1that- .at 'such times the bellows has 'thestrength ot a tube having, a vwallthickness' equal to theradial depthtjoi' athe bellows plates.

o Wh'eniexpanded; adjacent plates of the bellows whichvare welded together adjacent their inner v peripheries; are moved 5 into contact 1 -,with each 1 other ithroughout the greater extent of thegarea v of their faces asai result of theinternali pressureacting: upon-:thebello'ws, inconsequenceoi which the, internalpressure isbalanced, being equal and I opposite on both --sides of the contactlngzplates "5 and'the'platessupport each other. Relatively thin; plates thus maybe utillz'edqior the bellows to resist relativelygreat pressures. Preferably 'also;-gthe-;inner;weld"ismade eta-substantial distance {mm the inner-peripheries of the plates 40 toprovideaninner reinforcement ior thebellows :against'internal pressures.

,: The. 5 bellows of the present, invention ca v. pebleot general applicaticn'and, maybeused bellows of. prior types are j employed. The inventionis disclosedz herein as appliedfto 7 expansion joints-, internal mcombustion engines and pumpslbutlitdsi'to be understood that the invention 1 'is' not limited to such applications. h v R'Ihenature .of. they invention from thefollowing description consideredincon; nection' with a the: accompanying drawings form ing a' part thereof and inwhlch: 1 v Fig.1 is'fa longitudinalqsectlonal"view oi bellows embodying?theinvention.v the bellows-being "'55shownfin' expandedcondition;-1 p I litill ns' h invent on; l

si'stance welding. ,As-"so constituted. the plates will be understood 7 1 s em Y similar to.1"ig.-. 1, but showing the bellows fully c r d;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of one of a metal m rrom which ,thefbellows maybe fabricated;.- s t Fig. i is avlewsimilartoul'lg. 2; vane other-iorm ot bellows; p a v p 5 is a longitudinal sectional view, showing the bellows utilized as an expansion joint, the ex-.

1 'pansion jointcomprising a plurality ofunit bel-' ws c o s ciin ei Ne male is a transverse sectional line H oi'-iliig..5;

i Fig. ;'l is a longitudinalsectional view similar to Fig. 5, showing another of expansion joint Elms is apartial longitudlnal'sectional view of bellows the invention and illustrating t man er gin;-

so e Plates bm t e h th -u era m I 9 is a longitudinal sectional view of m 111- ternal. combustion engine in which the power chamber'thereo! is a bellows embodying the inn s: a y

,:;1'0 -is.-.a. longitudinal sectional view of a pumpembodying the bellows'invention; v

V -Rig. iiisa-partial sectional 'view'oi apparatus ior electric resistance seam-welding the bellows platesasdiacent their-outer perlpheriesto produce the bellows: and i I v I p Fig; 1 2'is asimilarshowing apparatus for effecting seamweldlng ot. the plates adjacent the inner-'peripheries-therech Like characters of reference similar parts throughout the several views.

3 5 Referring to the form of the invention shown in'jigs. i and 2, the bellows-is fabricated from relatively thin,.;flat,r.annula'r sheet metal plates. stainless steel preferably, of the type shown in Fig. 3. anddesignated by, reference character II. The bellows may bewfabricated from, plates of otherishapea'suchss oval or square. having apertures oi any configuration, and no intention is entertainedto limit the invention to bellows produced irom annular plates having circular apertures: The plates irom which the bellows areiabricat'ed are all disposed concentrically and are together-{alternately adjacent their inner-land outer p l' lh flq resp tively W 6186- is welded to anladiacent plate which is disposed at one 3 sidev oi the first mentioned plate, on a refer to like or ems longitudinal sectionalview;

peripheries of the plates, as indicated at B. One method by which resistance welding 01 this character is accomplished will be hereinafter disclosed. The outside plates of the bellows are resistance welded LO terminal plates H and I2. As shown, each of these terminal plates comprises a relatively heavy annulus having a thin radial flange l3 projecting from its outer periphery to which an end plate of the bellows is welded, and

having its inner periphery threaded as indicated-.. at l 4 to provide means for securing the bellows to the parts with which it is to be associated in use. The bellows shown in Figs. 1 and 2 may be used with any desired number of sheet metal plates-in the form shown, or this organization may be utilized as a unit bellows section and.-

employed as one of" any number of bellows sections as illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6, whereinthe bellows is utilized as an expansion joint. Four unit sections, designated respectively C, D, E, and Fare employed, each of these sections being, as shown, identical with the bellowsshown in Figs. 1 and 2. The unit sections CD. DE and EF, are

. connectedto'gether by being threaded on externally threadedni'pples l5. Anannular g'asket' l6 inserted between the adjacent terminal plates and 12 of adjacent unit sections and is disposed adjacent the nipples, [5 to provide pressure tightness between the sections. Terminalplate ll of section C is threaded ononeend of a vanstone neckl6, having a vanstone lap II on the other end. Terminal plate l2 of section F is likewise threaded on one end of a vanstoneneck" l8. Gaskets Ill-provide pressure tightness between the unit sectionsand the necks l6 and I8. An internal "sleeve andalignment guide 20 is secured at one end'to' the outer end of the neck l8. An external sleeve and limit of expansion stop 2|, split longitudinally a shown in Fig. 6 with the halves bolted together, prevents the entrance of foreign matterbetween the bellows plates and provides means for limiting the expansion of the bellows. Loose'ring-flanges 22 having bolt holes 23 provide means by which the expansion Joint may'be bolted to the parts with which it is to be associated.

Another expansion joint'a'rrangement utilizing the bellows of the present invention is shown in 'The vanstone necks 25 and. have radial flanges 21 and 28, respectively, threaded, on the inner ends oi the necks and secured in position by welding. The end plates III of the bellows, are secured to the flanges 21 and 28, by means of split rings 29 having radially inwardly projecting flanges 30- whichenter the space 31 between the end plateslland the thereto adjacent plates.

A;ring gasket .32 is placedbetweenthe flanges 21 and 28 andfthe end plates "lll'for pressure tightness, and suitablemeans' such asthebolts 33 secure the rings 29 to the flanges. An external sleeve and limit stop 34, split in half longitudinal:

ly and having means such as screws and nuts to hold the halves together, is placed over the bellows in engagement with the outer peripheries of the flanges 21 and 28. An internal sleeve and alignment guide 35 has one end secured,

as by welding, to the vanstone neck 26.- Loose ring flanges such as shown at 36 having bolt holes 31, provide means for bolting the joint to the pipeline or other parts with which it is tobeused. i

A further arrangement of bellows is shown in Fig. 4, which is the same as that shown in Figs. 1 and 2 with the exception that every other A plate, indicated 40, has a greater inside diameter than the other plate i0, so that only the latter plates project a substantial distance radially inwardly of the lines of weld B to provide an integral inner reinforcement for the bellows, which will be referred tomore fully hereinafter.

Fig; 9 illustrates one means for utilizing. the bellows of thepresent invention as the combustion' chamber of an internal combustion engine. The bellows designated 45, is similar in all respects tothebellows shown in Figs. 1, 2, and

7 except that the inside diameter of the individual metal plates is considerably smaller to reduce the internal residual volume of the bellows when closed to-the proper value to provide the necessary ratio of compression for 'efli'cient operation. The uppermost plate 46 of the bellows is larger in diameter than the other: plates to provide means for securing the upper end. of the bellows in fixed position. Plate 4B,"in the formoffmotor shown, is clamped between the upper :end of the-guide 41 and the head 48. Guide 41 comprises upper and lower annuli 49. and 50, respectively; which are connected by opposed guides 5| and 52. A suitable gasket 53 may be interposed 'between the plate 46 and the head 48. The lowermost plate 54 is welded'atits outer periphery to the outer periphery of a terminal plate 55 similar to the plates H and I2 of Figs. 1 and 2.

Plate 55 is threaded-on a centrally disposed stud 56*projecting from the upper surface of a cross-head51 having opposed bearing members ,58'and which move in the guides 5| and 52 respectively. A connecting rod 53' is connected for oscillatory movement at itsupper end to the cross-head 51' and at its lower end is connected to acrank-shaft 60. A crank case 6| encloses the crank-shaft and associated mechanisms.

Head 48 is provided with an-inlet port62 and an exhaust port 63 communicating with the combustion chamber 64, the ports being controlled by valves 65 and 66 respectively. A spark plug 61 is threaded into a depression inthe head 48. With this arrangement, the motor is entirely aircooled and no oil comes into contact with the heat of combustion. It will, of course, be understood that the form of internal combustion erfgine shown in Fig. 9 is merely illustrative of the application of-the bellows invention to such engines and that the form andarrangement of the various parts may be varied as desired. I

Fig. 10. illustrates theinvention applied, to

pumps. Thebellows 10 is substantially the same as the bellows 45 shown in Fig. 9, and is connectedto the pump parts inthe same manner that bellows 45 isconnectedto the-motor parts. The

uppermost plate II of the bellows. is clamped between the bellows housing I2 and the pump head 13. The lowermost plate". of the bellows is welded to piston head 15, theupper part of which is like the plate 55 of the motor shown inFig. 9.

s 'Heada-IE lscarried oni angend of piston rod/It which; moves in a guidej'll formed in the lower ndo the ouei slli H ad n is brovlaedflwit' y'suitable ;inlettand -outlet valves [8 and" .ref' 5 ispectively Fig. ,10 is intended merelylto illustrate 11 tm s. ;,,11j"@312: illustrate t new and J which the bellows plates maybe welded A: t theralternatelvadjacent their inner and out? ervpefln e ie respegtiv l t rm t fi er 9 s i thistinventionj iAs'lndlcated in these figure the tort plates totbe vwelded" through electrode lng ,;sr nal1est possible practical on}theplatesand which provides the requiofflthei iorm tshownln ilgsfl'l 2 inwhich the electrodeflhas a cylindrical end the-felectrode'ls 'in the forxn of an inverted has agcylindricaltipfilof ,non conduct- Ela n ,o ss h oush wh hrass sa pe llof j smallldlameter Means.'not shown; disposedintneieleotrodegserves to exert sufiicient 1 pressureonthewirejltomaintain thelower end ueontact with, t he work being welded ironfr contact with'thej work; Such means nd 'for rotating the turntable; A

f fsupports the 'wbellows terminal. plate "I I on the wet nbellwitl ie rfe q 'n mb at s10 have been w'eldedtogether. Actn wadmrmetnoa will be'des'cribed intermediatepart or the l bellows; but the same made that th'e-el'ectrodelfi has been'moved upwardly and that the parts not theturntable 't ringrs'l whlch will hereinafter-be referred .'.we1ding*gasket"! is then placedabove the v V peripheral-portion theplates l lln prepg -aration for thenext-innenweld to be madegafter the outerweld now ,being described is finished. *Pli vious' to making'nthe last inner gweld tI and manner in which thebellows'offthis invention I ay fbe applied topurnpsgso that :it will be under;

welding is; ,efle'cted by;electric resistance j line or "@seam', .eldlng; j The'electriccurrent is Supplied men ete'mb jb nnhes; the apmi ation o the a,

w reankt e li s e r bly throu h? I nducting part of they electrode. Such'an b-9'd iJi9rt qn: '9 w e ref r l b-9 5' ecured to -a 'supportingr member 8 l. The lower material, .flhetelectrode' and tiphave regis-j' release the .pressure when the electrode is t operate pneumatically; hydraulically" or t I means,

the plate a vertically upwardly 'or H supporting plate 89; U 'shaped" J in cross sction;

1e 'I he terminalplatel'l has lzoeen welded onnectio'n with thelwelding of plates III in an in thod maype u ditrj the welding oi another- 7 J w'e'll a's'j'the wldingof the plates'tothe es I land-l2; Ihe'wel'ding'of-adJa-" f r *ltbe aissujneu that an'innerweld lhaa been i iswhichiarei normally disposed above the plates [0 alterthe preceding outer weld H had been completed;' a continuous circularcopper welding gasket 91 was placed, asfshown; 'over the outer peripheral portion of the uppermost plate l0 so as to oover the line of the weld'andtoproject beyond the outer periphery o1' f'the plates l0 and toflieifln the notch 92 in theflange "81. After weldingfga'sket 99 had thus been placed in prepajration ionthe outerweld now being described; aplate Jllwas superposed'and inner weld'I made. Th'ecircularwelding gasket;9l is"pla'.ced ln'posh tion s aforesaid; after which another plate I0 is placed in positionon the table; I

Ari; inner clrcular'clarnping plate 93 is then placed in position and isfsecuredtothe member M. by a'boltisll Plate '93 a circular recess in the outerperlpheratportion of lts'under side and arijinsulating bearing-plate 95 of U-shaped crossseeticnis secureQtherein; *Plate 85 is arranged so that the radially innrp'ortion' 96 acts as acen':

teringdevlcejfor' plates i0 and the radially outer pcijtlontl'bearson'theuppermost plate In just in'sldeithe line of weldandfabov'e the innerp ftionzorthe copperwelding gasket 90; The outer periphery of the plate N ls beveled, as indicated at l,-, to'provide'iroom' for the lower'end'of the velectrodegdoiwhen'the W'eldis being made; An outerfannular clamping plate is then secured =tojtheflanefll'by af'ring 6: bolts I00. *Plate 99 has agfclrcular recess'in' the inner peripheral portion thelowe'r faceand an annular insulating bearing ring 101' is secured therein. Ring l0] bears upon the copper welding gasket 92 and presses it firmly against'ilange 81 to insure a good electrical contact; between" the welding gasket and flange, 'Ringflol jalso bears upon the plates i0 beingfwelded'on its inner'peripheral portion as ,clearlyshown 1:115; 11. The inner periphery illicit-plate flis lbeveled as indicated, to provide sumcientroom"Iorfthe-lower end of the electrode at." wne au isfinreadiness to make an'outer to weld, thej'lseveral parts willbe lnthe positions s'hownrln Big. 11. The backing-up plate 88 will have beenanovedlupwardly topress the plates 10 firmly against theiJortio'nTQl of plate! and the overlapping portionoi' ring I M and to provide a ga e, electrical cbhtactbetween the lower plate I 0 beingjweldedl and" the" copper weldin gasket 90.

I'I'he turntable is then caused to rotate andele'ctrio current 'is,"supplied to the electrodeill and will flow/from the; lowrfend o! the electrode v through the plates tlt'to'befwel'ded through copper gasket '90,.flangej'L'annulus' and through other, part's o'f. the turntable, to completethe weld- ;ing gc'ircuit. 'l'heturntable is rotated and theelectreaiisimmtamed in" contact with the plates until the line: otlweld forms a complete circlegjthe weldlbeinz forniedas the plates move relative to the electrode injsliding contact therewith. Water may belirunon theelectrode, and permitted to ncwmtotnetr ugn provided by the beveled edges es and lfltoaid in dissipating the heat generated ,during' the welding Aiter'the completion ot the weld J, the electrode is moved upwardly, bolts 94, and". are removed, plates and are removed and plate 88 is moved upwardly until copper welding gasket "is clear 0! flange'l'k Welding gaskettll is then moved to one side until a portlon ls ii'eeor the plates" lo. after which it is cutradially T or otherwise and is then' removed fromYhetweenftheplates Ill.

i-Torha'ke vthe neirt lnn'erweld K, a copper weld- ,il'lgl as ketl'l lll, like-Welding 'g'aslre't 9 1, is first placed over'theh outer peripheral portion of the ,uppermcst,.plate,- I l, and then another plate- Ill to he welded to the inher portio'r i of the said up permost plate is placed in position. Backing-up plate 88 is then lowered untilcopper gasket 9| comes into contact with the notch in the upper outer part of member 84.

' platev I06 is thenbolted'to' the member 84 by. bolt 94. Plate .I06 has an insulating bearing plate I01 secured-in theouter peripheral portionof its lower face which serves to engage the uppermostplate lo being welded, andto press the cop-,

per welding gasket 91 into. finn contact'fwith member 84. Plate I01 also acts a's' agcentering device for plates I0. I The outer periphery of plate i706 isbeveled' as-indicated at [08.1 A clamping plate 109 is secured to-[the flange 81 b'yb'olts, I and is providedwith an insulating bearing plate Hilin the outer portion of its lowerface, having a portion l I I which bear sjagainst the uppermost tact. The electrodeis then lowered into contact plate loin the-zone-just outside the line of weld and in the ,zone of the outer portion of, welding gasket 9 I, Plate lilalso has a portionfllfl which bears againstthe upper inner portion of gasket 105. Before the weldis made the backing-up plate is raised until the plates l0 are'held fiat andfirm and the parts throughwhich thejwelding current is to pass are in .good electrical con- I for-the copper welding gasket which willprevent the latter, from conformingto any irregularities in the surfaceof the plates I!) previously, welded, and thus make it diflicult to obtain a perfect weld.

{The foregoing description is believed to" be .sufiicient to disclose one method by which the plates l0 maybe secured together to form a bellows ofthe present invention; Thismethod', to-

.gether with the means forj carryingout the method, are more fully disclosed in; my copending application, Serial No. 753,849,'fi1ed November 20, 1934, whereinnthe method and apparatus are claimed. The line welds made in, accordance with .the method herein disclosed are pressure tight and are capable of .withstandingwithout leakage or failure, pressures atleast' as greatas' the metal plates will withstand without welding; That is,

line welds producedby; this method will at least develop the full strength of the metal being welded. With the bellows plates seam welded as described,v the movements ot expansion andcontraction are entirely in the plates themselves, in

theareas thereof between the outer and inner; line. welds, so that in operation no'strain is "placed on the welds themselvesf I y v Means, other than welding, may be utilized for securing the individual plates together 'to form a bellows, if desired and: if satisfactory for the purpose intended.

. Withthe individual plates of the bellows welded toget'her in accordance with the aforesaidmethod, no depositionof extraneous metal is required,' in

consequence of whicli'the portions ofthe weldedplates ,alongthe linespf' weld are of'no ,greater" thickness than the portions notwelded, vand the plates ,arebapable of the same close proximity to eachotherasif they were not welded. As a result, when the bellows is completely A circular clamping cO'ntractedIas shown in Fig. 2; the bellows; has the equivalent strength of a continuous tube of the same metal having a wall thickness equal to the radial depth of the plates from which the bellows is made. Also, as a'result of the welded plateslyingfiat upon each other when the bellows is closed, there is n'o'volume between plates in the closed position. This is of greatvalue' for internal combustion engines and pumps. g [As thebellows expands from fully contracted condition, the strength of'the bellows diminishes, somewhat in proportion to'the'extent of the expansion, or in proportion-to the extent the plates are separated by the movement of expansion. However, the extent to which the individual plates must be separated for any given overall move ment' of expansion, may be readily-controlled and limited by thesimple expedient of fabricating the bellows with a sufiicient number of" plates to keep thefextentof separation of the'plates' within the desired maximum." In this way, bellows consisting of' relatively thin sheet metal plates welded together'may be made to withstand relatively great pressures;

Another feature which renders the bellows of the present invention relativelyvery strong is the internal reinforcement provided by the metal oflthe plates between their inner, peripheries and the inner lines of welds B. Theseintegral reinforcing rings, designated R, maintain the inner vertices of the platesin fixed position upon expansion of the bellows and' separation of the plates, and serve toresist any "tendency of these vertices to move outwardly'under pressure and thereby materially weaken the bellowsi This internal reinforcement is provided in bellows fabricated from plates, all'of which are of the same inside diameter as shown in Figs. 1 and Z or will be" provided in bellows" wherein; alternate plates areof greater inside diameter than the other plates, as shown in Fig. 4. vWith the latter arrangement, the number of reinforcing ringsis smaller but the reinforcement provided'will .bo

amplefor many purposes. If desired, adjacent plates which are welded together at a distance from the inner peripheries to provide the reinforcing rings R, Figs. 1 and 2, may also be welded together near their inner peripheries, Obviously, if the inner reinforcement is not required or do:- slred, it may be omitted, in which sevent the plates will be welded closefto their iinner'periph- ;eries.-

A further feature which contrib tes to'the ilatively great strength ,of the bellows, isjthe'. fact that when the bellows is; expanded; the plates thereof which are welded together adjacent their innerperipheries, are forced into contact with each other throughout the greater extent of. their areas, as indicated in Fig. 8, as a result of the pressureto which the bellows plates are subjected,

so thatthese plates support each other over their contacting areas. Equal and opposite pressures acting over equal areas balance eachother and the contacting areasof the plates float and are subjected to no stress. The result'of this is that the bellows maybe-made from relativelyqthin metal platesto withstand relatively. great pres- "the bellows, the smallerwill be'the separation between plates and the greater will be thefareas offidiacent plates which .i'pelftillgtklchibthei,.- v T; plates-of the bellows-automatically adjust ,theirgpressure; balancing: contact areas to suit a ly-jiven-pressure. The greater the pressure "the are incontact furtherg out the cc'ntactiareas move, thus shortening the span of the zone of unbalanced pressure. It will be noted that this span decreases along with the magnitude of unbalanced pressure as the'internal pressure increases. This action does not afiect the flexibility of the bellows. The

' bellows also hasgreat flexibility, even when de- [signed for high operating pressures, since it is possible to use thin plates and deep sections. I

' f When the bellows is employed as the power,

Any length of travel may also be obtained.

' chamberof an internal combustion engine, it

is possible to secure the desired or required ratio ofcompression merely by varying the size of f the central aperture of the plates making up the bellows. This'is possible because of the fact that '7 when the bellows iscompletely contracted, the

r extent of their individual plates are in contact throughout the face areas so that the volume existing between the plates when the bellows is compressed, is substantially zero. Prior types of bellows have their individual parts spaced from each other when compressed so that the desired ratio of compression is difilcult if not ,impossible to obtain.

Moreover, the bellows herein disclosed will pro- ;vide relatively large displacements at high speeds withcornparatively low rate of movement of the individual plates of the'bellows. For example, if

a bellows embodying the present invention were employed as shown in Fig. 9, andthe crankshaft, were turning at 1800 R. P. M., and the amplitude of travel of the bellows were one-half inch, the axial speedof themoving head of the .bellows would only be 150 feet per minute and if v the bellows were composed of 50 pairs of discs,

the individual discs would move at a speed of I only 3 feet perminute, with respect to their own :fiexing'rnovements.

As an indication of the strength of bellows embodying my invention, bellows fabricated from stainlesssteel plates of 0.018" thickness, having an outside diameter of 11%" and an inside diameter of 6" and seam, welded together by electrlc resistance welding as shown in Figs. 1 and 2,

were tested under hydraulic pressure and successfully withstood a pressure of 2,500 pounds per square inch without .leakage and without. any I kgimpairment of the normal "functioning of the bellows; v

Due to the fact that the bellows are fabricated y from flat plates, these plates may be made of the groups of. ferrous metals known as stainless w'hich'thel bellows arefabricated and that the thickness of plates usedmay v 'yrover a comparatively widerange since definite control of j' l 'jh extent of separation of the plates is possible which providescontrol over the flexing of the Yir dividual plates.

Since variations are possible in the forms 01 the invention herein disclosed and the materials from whichthe bellows are made and since the 'a,oe4,4oe

' bellows may be applied to other uses than those disclosed without departing from the principles of'theinventlon, it is understood that no intention is entertained to limit the invention except by thescope. oi the appended L claims.

" "What I claim is:

1. Bellows comprising a plurality of flat, apertured, metallic discs concentrically disposed, alternate plates having a greater inside diameter than the other plates, each of said alternate plates being united to the adjacent plates disposed at one side, adjacent its outer periphery, and united to the adjacent plates disposed on the other side, adjacent its inner periphery, whereby the inner peripheral portions of said other plates are caused to act as reinforcements for the bellows.

2. Bellows having a movement absorbing portion comprising a plurality of thin, corrosion resistant, metallic elements of substantial mechanical strength having openings therein, joined together in fluid pressure tight relationship by fu- "sion'of the metal of adjacent elements only to unite in continuous lines oppositely disposed surfaces of adjacent elements within the confines of the peripheries of the elements. 3. Bellows having a. movement absorbing portion comprising a plurality of thin, corrosion resistant, metallic elements of substantial mechanical strength having openings therein, joined together in fluid pressure tight relationship by fusion of the metal o'fadjacent elements only to unite in continuous lines oppositely disposed surfaces'of adjacent elements within the confines oi the peripheries of the elements, each element being secured adjacent its outer periphery to the adjacent element on one side and adjacent its inner periphery to the adjacent element on the other side. a v

4; Bellows having a movement absorbing portion comprising a plurality of thin, corrosion resistant, metallic elements of substantial mechanicalstrength having openings therein, joined together in fluid pressure tight relationship by fusion of the metal of adjacent elements'only to unite in continuous lines oppositely disposed surfaces-of adjacent elements within the confines of the'peripheries of the elements, the arrangement being such that adjacent elements are in substantially full surface contact when the bellows is in fully contracted condition.

5. Bellows having a movement absorbing porition comprising a plurality of thin, corrosion resistant, metallic elements of substantial mechanical strengthhaving openings therein, joined togetherln fluid pressure tight relationship by insion of themetal of adjacent elements only to unite in continuous lines oppositely disposed surfaces of adjacent elements within the confines of. the peripheries of the elements, and reinforcing means acting upon apices of the bellows.

6'. Bellows having a movement absorbing portion comprising a plurality of thin, corrosion resistant, metallic elements of substantialmechanical strength having openings therein, joined together in fluid pressuretight relationship by fusion of the metal 01 adjacent elements only to unite in continuous lines oppositely disposed surfaces of adjacent'elements within the confines orthe'peripheries of the elements, adiacent elements being secured together at a distance from the periphery of one or both of the elements sufllcient to cause that portion of one or both of the elements disposed intermediate said periphery and gether by fusion 01' the metal of adjacent elements the line 01' junctureto provide bellows reinforcement.

'l. Bellows" having a movement absorbing portion comprising a plurality of thin, corrosion re- 5 sistant, metallic elements of substantialmechanical strength having openings therein, joined toielements.

only to unite in fluid pressure tight relationship oppositely disposed surieces of adjacent elements within the confines of the peripheries of the 

